Hungry residents
of the East Village of New York City scavenge for something to eat
three days after hurricane Sandy cut off the supply of food.

“Buy land or get to some land in a rural area where you can fend for yourself. You need to be able to plant a garden, raise a few chickens, hunt, fish, trap, and forage for wild edibles. I’ll take fields and forest over city dumpsters any day.”

I have nothing against “dumpster diving” as a hobby. There are people who are really into that, you know? They live to dumpster dive. That's all well and good, but you don't want to be in the position where you have to dumpster dive to live, like those people in the picture above.

My home is in Central New York State (and, yes, I've dumpster dived a time or two in my life). We were warned to expect some storm damage from Hurricane Sandy. But it didn't happen. Some rain came. Some wind too. The lights flickered once. That was the extent of it. But there will be more storms. Maybe the next one will hit us hard.

I happen to like and appreciate electricity. It would be a real bummer to be without it. I especially appreciate hot running water. But I will not be surprised if I lose electricity here someday for a long time. I wouldn’t even be surprised if the grid went down for good someday. Whatever the case, I’m prepared to deal with it and adjust my life as needed to accommodate the change.

We have a store of food, land, and the ability to growmore food. We have water in a well that can be accessed without electricity, as well as creek water, and barrels to store rainwater if need be. We have firewood for heating and cooking, and woodland to cut more firewood. We have oil lamps for light and fat lamps for when the oil runs out (someday I’ll show you my fat lamps). Freezers and fridges are nice but not a necessity. There are other options for storing food. Yes, life would be harder here, but not desperate, because we have options available to us. Options that people living in the east Village of New York City (or any city) will never have.

Mind you, I don’t have wind or solar power, with a bank of batteries. I don’t have a big generator with an enormous fuel tank (though I do have a small, portable generator for temporary electrical outages). I simply have land, and tools, along with the skills and attitudes needed to make a go of it without electricity. If you would like to read a thought-provoking and useful book about living without electricity, check out Michael Bunker’s, Surviving Off Off-Grid. It’s an excellent book..

Cutting Firewood

Layland and 12A with a load of firewood

Our new property (purchased earlier this year) has woods that will be a source of firewood for years to come. The five acres of woods are on each side of a stream and the land slopes down to the waterway on each side. The trees are mostly ash, maple and black cherry, with some enormous willows along the stream. There are some elms along the edges. Almost all the trees are scrappy, meaning that they are not timber quality.

I intend to spend the rest of my life working to develop a better stand of hardwoods on this little section of land. The willows will be cut down. dense shrubbery along the edges of the woods will be cleared. The grapevines that are strangling trees will be cut. Dead trees will be cut. And the scraggly live trees will be thinned out. New growth of maple and black cherry will be encouraged. I may try planting some oak trees throughout the area and I want to plant some hardwood saplings along the woods, out into our field, to extend the woods. The county soil & water department sells hardwood saplings for a dollar each in the spring. I hope to take advantage of that. This is work I can really get into.

The wood in the picture above is from a basswood tree that was rotten at the bottom and blew down in the wind from hurricane Sandy. Basswood is not the best firewood because it is so light in weight. Pound for pound, wood is wood and, once dry, it will burn very nicely, but less dense woods like basswood (willow, and poplar too) will burn quickly. As a result, the woodstove has to be loaded more often. So we will use that basswood (now split and stacked under cover) for boiling maple syrup..

A Good Chainsaw & A Great Saw Sharpening System

Yours truly cutting a dead elm with my 380

I bought a used Stihl 380 chainsaw from Marlene’s father many years ago. I haven’t used it much, until now. With the acquisition of wood land, the saw is now getting a workout. It is my only chainsaw, but I bought another used Stihl saw on Ebay and am awaiting its arrival.

I've bought the new/used saw for Marlene as a wedding anniversary present. I looked up the traditional list of wedding anniversary gifts, and for the 32nd anniversary it said “chainsaw.” Perfect.

Marlene actually wanted a chainsaw that she could use to cut small trees. The Stihl MS170 looks like it’ll be just right.

Once I get the saw, I’ll outfit it with a new bar and buy two new blades. If the sprocket is worn at all, I’ll replace that too. I’ll get the new parts from Bailey’s. I will get saw chain that I can sharpen with a Carlton File-o-Plate.

The Carlton File-o-Plate

When I was 18 years old, and a student at the Sterling School in Caftsbury Common, Vermont, I learned about the Carlton File-o-Plate. We used chainsaws to cut pulpwood (which was hauled out of the woods with horses) and used the File-o-Plate to keep the blades sharp.

Relatively few people have heard of the File-o-Plate, but it was developed in 1965. Among those who understand such things, the Carlton File-o-Plate is considered to be the most intelligent and effective device ever invented for sharpening chainsaw blades. You can buy one for about five bucks and it will last you a lifetime (if you don’t lose it).

The File-o-Plate itself does not actually sharpen a chainsaw blade. It serves as a guide for hand-filing the teeth, and for progressively lowering each tooth’s depth gauge. So, in addition to the File-o-Plate, you need a chainsaw file and a flat depth gauge file. Depth Gauge height is critical to sharpening a chainsaw, especially as the tooth is shortened from many sharpenings.

The Carlton File-o-Plate is kind of a mysterious little device until you figure out how to use it. Then, once you get the technique down, you will love it. Not only does it help you easily hand-file a very sharp blade, it frees you from being dependent on someone with a blade grinder to keep your chains sharp. Those motorized blade grinders often take off too much metal. So you don’t get the life span out of a blade that you can get by simple hand-filing.

There are all kinds of other clever chainsaw sharpening devices on the market. Maybe some of them are as good as the File-o-Plate. I don’t know. But I’m real pleased with my File-o-Plate.

By the way, the Carlton company once published a very informative booklet, The Complete Book of Saw Chain, that explains how chainsaw blades cut (you might be surprised) and how to keep them in proper working condition. I don’t think the printed version of the book is available anymore. There are online pdf versions. If you'd like me to e-mail a pdf copy to you, just request it from me at hckimball@bci.net

By the way, if you missed my mid-November post here about my Whizbang firewood cutting rack, Click Here For Details..

A Young Entrepreneur

Shelby Grebenc

I have a lot of respect for any young person who has the gumption and focus to pursue a moneymaking idea. So teenage entrepreneurs—especially those who focus on an agri-preneurial business—always grab my attention. The picture of Shelby Grebnec above comes from This Denver Post Article. Shelby keeps poultry and sells both meat and eggs at local markets. Her article is unique in that Shelby herself wrote it and submitted it to the paper. And it’s kind of an unusual article because Shelby is so opinionated. But if you have ever tried to sell eggs or poultry at a farm market, and make money at it, you'll be able to relate to her experiences..

On Older Entrepreneur

Glen Tompkins is 81 years old and has a busy woodworking business

A reader of last month’s blogazine here left a comment with a link to an article (Click Here to Read the article) about 81-year-old Glen Tompkins of Peru, Maine who has a woodworking business. He makes clothes-drying racks and other items.

Most people at 81 years of age are not working with their hands to make a living, and if they are, they are not usually pursuing an entrepreneurial vision, building a business. Mr. Tompkins is an inspiration to me, and his example should be an inspiration to everyone who understands the value of doing productive, creative work into their so-called retirement years.

I intend, Lord willing, to be physically working, crafting with skill and passion, in my home workshop to a ripe old age. That’s my retirement plan.. .

Social Security

(Are Your Feeling Lucky?)

Speaking of retirement, I remember years ago hearing the late financial advisor, Larry Burkett, say that he decided not to sign up for Social Security because it was, technically speaking, a government handout, similar to food stamps or welfare. He felt that proper lifelong stewardship of his financial resources, and God’s blessings in his life, were such that he did not need to collect Social Security.

Larry Burkett made it clear that he was not condemning anyone for taking Social Security, or advising anyone not to take it. He just felt strongly convicted that he should not collect any money from the program.

You certainly will not find many people with that opinion of Social Security! Most everyone looks forward to the day they can start getting something back after a lifetime of paying. People figure that they deserve the money.

Well, no matter how the government has sold the Social Security program over the years, the FICA “contributions” are clearly a tax. The money isn’t invested, and recipients are paid largely from incoming Social Security tax levies. Social Security really is a type of Ponzi scheme. Those who get into the scheme early benefit the most, while those who get in later, will benefit the least.

I admire Larry Burkett for the stand he took, and I’d like to do the same. I don’t know if I will, but if I can continue to be productive into my older years, without taking Social Security, that’s what I’m going to do. Time will tell.

There is another aspect to this whole matter of Social Security and that is the question of whether or not it will even be around to collect in the future. Thus the subheading above: “Are You Feeling Lucky?”

Social Security, and other “entitlement” programs that Americans have grown to depend on, are predicated on ever-expanding economic prosperity. As long as the economy is growing and prosperity abounds, the money to keep paying the commitments that were made in years past is more easily available. But that is no longer the case.

The economy is not booming any more. And I think the reality that it’s never going to boom again like it once did is settling into the consciousness of Americans. It will get harder and harder for government to pay the handouts as it has in the past. I don’t suppose I’m telling you anything you don’t already know.

My point in writing this is to suggest that it behooves us all to contemplate emerging realities and start preparing now for life without government entitlements of any kind. How does a person prepare for such a thing? I suggest that the best way is to: 1) focus on living a healthy lifestyle, 2) eliminate debt, 3) reduce your needs and dependencies by creating a productive homestead, 4) plan on working into your old age and, 5) if you have not done so already, establish a home-based business that you and your family can operate far into the future.

Establishing a viable home-based business is easier these days than it has ever been because we have the internet to help market and sell goods and services. At this point, the internet is forever entwined with the success of the industrial economy. If the internet goes down, the whole economy goes down, and vice-versa.

In addition to economic crashes and long-term economic decline, I don't think it's out of the question that we will experience a severe infrastructure crash someday. As I’ve mentioned here before, complexity brings vulnerability. All complex, centralized civilizations have eventually collapsed. Why would our modern, industrialized civilization be any exception? It could be many years before that happens. Then again.....

Until then, even the most agrarian and contra-industrial-minded people need to work within (or on the edges of) the industrial economy to make the money they need in order to provide for themselves and their families. It is impossible to make a living without tapping into the industrial economy, unless you are independently wealthy. Or unless you try to live on the handouts of others who make their living in the industrial economy.When Social Security and all the other government freebies are no longer available, and/or the infrastructure crashes, if you have positioned yourself on a piece of land and have the tools and skills to be self reliant, then you will be able to shift your focus to full-time subsistence (without the need to dumpster dive). Having an industrial-world income certainly won’t be the necessity then that it is now.

That advice—that strategy for the future—is exactly the course of action I’ve been pursuing, with a lot of focus and determination, for the last 12 years. It is a deliberate agrarian strategy that takes into account industrial-world realities and necessities.

If my thoughts on this subject resonate with you, there is no time to waste in formulating your own plan. Start taking positive steps towards a future of greater self-reliance (as opposed to reliance on the government/industrial providers). Plans can and will change but righteous and wise objectives are where you should put your overall efforts..

A Boom In Business Jets?

I was in my workshop a couple days ago, making chicken plucker parts while listening to Fox News’ Neil Cavuto on my Satellite radio. He was interviewing the CEO of the Bombardier company, which had just made a 7.8 billion dollar deal to build 142 deluxe, global executive aircraft for a company called VistaJet.

I wasn’t paying a lot of attention to the story until Mr. Cavuto asked the CEO why VistaJet was buying these special aircraft. The man said that large corporations needed them in their global search for natural resources. That answer did not elicit any response from Neil Cavuto, but it would have if he was a “student” of Professor Walter Prescott Webb’s boom Hypothesis of Modern History.

Later on, I went to the internet to see if I could find out more about this reason behind the big jet contract and I found it in This Article. It says that VistaJet’s billionaire corporate customers need to fly from point to point, across the globe on short notice, and that the need for these aircraft is driven by the "race for resources" in areas such as Russia, Africa and Mongolia.

Professor Webb foresaw the decline in easy availability of natural resources back in the 1950’s and wrote about it in his amazing history book, The Great Frontier. He showed that the prosperity of the western world was built on the vast new lands and plentiful natural resources that came with the discovery of North and South America around 1500. The Western world experienced an economic boom that lasted 400 years, until around 1900. Now we’ve come to the “race for resources.”

Without a new source of vast natural resources—another Great Frontier—to develop and exploit, the industrial world can not sustain itself..

If you have not yet read my mid-November essay about Andrew Jackson, his war against the central bankers of his day, and constitutional money, Click Here.

As the industrial era wanes, the paper money schemes of governments in collusion with central bankers, will eventually fail, and the masses who have put their life savings into paper-based assets will lose. It won’t be the first time in history.

I recently heard Rand Paul, the son of Ron Paul, say that people are always asking him what they should do to preserve their assets so they’ll have something left after the paper dollar is destroyed and worthless. Mr. Paul said that he recommends that people buy land or another home that they can rent out. The point being that some things will still have value when paper money has none.

Land. A section of land that you can live on, husband, and draw sustenance from, is a tangible store of value. Always has been. Always will be..

My Apple Trees

Black Oxford apples. My mouth waters at the thought of one day biting into a Black Oxford apple that I have grown myself! (photo link)

These trees will be our first long-range plant investment into our land and I confess to being a little anxious about it. I planted half a dozen apple trees on our 1.5 acre homestead many years ago. They grew big but I didn’t care for them properly, and they never produced much of anything. I ended up cutting them down and planting Concord grapes in their place (the grapes have yielded wonderfully).

So I have a history of not being good at growing apple trees. To make matters worse, I’ve been reading Michael Phillip’s two books, The Apple Grower: A Guide for the Organic Orchardist and The Holistic Orchard. Though Mr. Phillips knows his subject well, he has a wordy, roundabout way of writing, and the books are dense with information. His books leave me a bit overwhelmed at the prospect of growing a dozen apple trees without it being a major effort and expense, and eventual failure. There are so many animals, insects, blights and molds that will attack my trees that it’ll be a miracle if I ever get a good apple. That’s the way I feel going into this.

Then, to further muddle my thinking, there is Sep Holzer who says in His Book that he pretty much just plants his apple trees and lets them grow wild. There is a definite appeal in that kind of approach.One thing for sure... these trees will be a learning experience.And now I’m contemplating a Carpathian walnut grove..

The Road To Serfdom

(Beware of the Planners!)

F. A. Hayek (1899-1992)

I have finally read The Road To Serfdom (click for Wikipedia link) by F. A. Hyek. I didn’t read the whole book. I read the Reader’s Digest condensed version (published in 1945).

You can find a link to a pdf download of the condensed version at this web page. After you download the pdf, I suggest that you go directly to page 31, which will take you past all the commentary to the actual Reader's Digest article. It will take you an hour or so to read it. You must read it. You will be wiser for doing so. It will give you insights into what is happening in America today, and where we are headed as a nation..Hayek warned about the great dangers that come as a result of centralized government planning, especially when it comes to the economy. Hayek makes the point that central planners may have honorable intentions, but their actions will invariably lead to the destruction of individual liberty. He embraces the basic agrarian principle of decentralized power and individual freedom within the rule of law. Here are some quotes from the book:

"Individualism, in contrast to socialism and all other forms of totalitarianism, is based on the respect of Christianity for the individual man and the belief that it is desirable that men should be free to develop their own individual gifts and bents."

"Nobody saw more clearly than the great political thinker de Tocqueville that democracy stands in an irreconcilable conflict with socialism: ‘Democracy extends the sphere of individual freedom,’ he said. ‘Democracy attaches all possible value to each man,’ he said in 1848, ‘while socialism makes each man a mere agent, a mere number. Democracy and socialism have nothing in common but one word: equality. But notice the difference: while democracy seeks equality in liberty, socialism seeks equality in restraint and servitude.’

“...the virtues which are held less and less in esteem in Britain and America are precisely those on which Anglo-Saxons justly prided themselves and in which they were generally recognized to excel. These virtues were independence and self-reliance, individual initiative and local responsibility, the successful reliance on voluntary activity, noninterference with one’s neighbour and tolerance of the different, and a healthy suspicion of power and authority. Almost all the traditions and institutions which have moulded the national character and the whole moral climate of England and America are those which the progress of collectivism and its centralistic tendencies are progressively destroying.

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Nodding Wold

A reader of this blog recommended the book, Nodding Wold, by the British author, Herbert Leslie Gee. I bought a copy, and read it, and found it to be a pleasant book.

It is the story of a man and his wife who move from a townto live in a small rural English village named Nodding-On-The-Wold. The time period is the autumn of 1938 to the autumn of 1939, when England declared war on Germany (and this figures into the story). The book is narrated by the man (we don't know his name but I would assume that it is H.L. Gee). He and his wife, Judith, find the pace and way of life, and the people of Nodding Wold to be much different that they had known in the bigger town where they had been accustomed to living.

What I found so endearing about the book is its primary focus—the people and the community of Nodding Wold. It is a diverse community but a community united by shared custom and tradition. Nodding Wold is an idealistic, fictional, rural community, but I think that H.L Gee does provide his readers with a peek into a way of life that genuinely once was, and which now is practically extinct.

There is a sentimentalism about the story of the community of Nodding Wold, and it appealed to my agrarian senses. Agrarianism is as much about small-community interreliance as it is self reliance.

In some ways, Nodding Wold brought to mind Bedford Falls, the fictional town of the classic movie, It's a Wonderful Life. The combination of people living in community, their fraternal love and benevolence towards each other, and their faith in God makes for a good story every time.

If you like stories like that too, find yourself an inexpensive copy of Nodding Wold, stoke the woodstove, settle back in your easy chair, and enjoy your visit.Here is a passage from the book that gives you a taste of H.L. Gee's writing (John Brandt is the farmer in the story. He has recently lost his wife. The narrator has just expressed his condolences at the loss.)...

There was a pause before John Brandt replied. When he did, his answer seemed to have no bearing upon our conversation. 'I've been on this farm all my life,' said he with a touch of pride which seemed to make him more human than he had been all along. 'I've worked here, man and boy, these sixty years. I've seen wheat sown time and time again. I've ploughed and harrowed and thrashed year after year. But I've never understood what I was doing. I've never known how God changed one seed into many, how His rain, which spoils a line of washing, matures the grain, and how His sun, which fades the curtains, ripens the wheat. It's all beyond me—but I haven't sat idle because of that. I've done what I could.' Once again pride was in his voice, and I loved him for it. 'I've done what I could, and I've done it honestly, I think—and the harvest has never failed.'

The noise of the thrashing machine could be heard, a deep, steady hum below the cries of men and the intermittent barking of a dog. I caught sight of Harry (a very unbookish Harry) racing after geese, and I saw John Bradt smile as the bit of mischief flashed past the window. Then, in the quiet which followed, he said: 'I've always trusted God. I think I always shall. A man has to do what he can, and do it with heart and soul, leaving the rest. A man has to love a woman as long as he may keep her; and then, when God gathers her to Himself, he has to believe that what seems worst is best, and that in good time he'll understand.'

My copy of Nodding Wold is a "seventh impression, 1955" of the book, which was first published in 1940. It appears to have been a good selling book, and H.L. Gee was a prolific author, with over 30 other books written by him listed inside the front cover. Nevertheless, I can find nothing about him on the internet. He is something of a mystery.

Also, I wondered if maybe Nodding-On-The-Wold was a real place. A Google search did not find the town, but I did find Stow-On-The-Wold. A Google Maps search of Stow-On-The-Wold showed that it is surrounded by rural fields and woods. Perhaps Stow-On-The-Wold was Gee's inspiration for Nodding-On-The-Wold, like Seneca Falls, New York is believed to be the inspiration for Bedford Falls.

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You have finally reached the end of this month's Deliberate Agrarian blogazine. Postings for the next few months will probably be much more brief as I'm about to start getting serious about producing my next book: The Planet Whizbang Idea Book For Gardeners. Thanks for stopping by.

We built our house 27 years ago with a wood stove as the only heat source. I bought a used Vermont Castings stove, put it in the living room, and that has done the job for all those years. It’s simple, efficient, and reliable.

The only drawback is that our 1.5 acres of land did not provide enough firewood for us to be fuel self sufficient. So I’ve bought firewood from my neighbor every year.

But all of that changed this year. With the acquisition of 16 acres of land right next to our place, containing a woodlot of around 5 acres, we are now fuel self-reliant. It’s a downright good feeling.

Of course, I have to cut the wood, and haul it home, and split it. But that’s okay by me. I love to work in the woods and I’m a firewood cutter from way back (my parents heated their home with two wood stoves and we cut our own wood).

My wife, Marlene, is my #1 helper. She helped me cut and haul firewood back when we were dating in high school, and here we are so many years later, out working in the woods together. I feel young again cutting firewood with Marlene. It’s a beautiful thing.

This essay is about my latest idea for easily cutting the long lengths of firewood that we haul out of the woods and bring back home. It’s easier to carry a length of small-diameter tree out of the woods and throw it into to the wagon than it is to carry numerous already-cut-to-firewood-length pieces. So I end up with various lengths of wood that need to be cut up at home.

Cutting so many smaller-diameter lengths on the ground is a pain. Putting all the lengths up on a sawbuck of some sort makes it easier, but that’s still a pain. So I got to thinking.... and came up with the device shown in these pictures.

The T-posts are 7' long (around 6' high once pounded in the ground) and wired together at the top to prevent spreading (I have lots of t-posts because I use them to make garden trellis supports in my garden). The posts in the picture are 16” apart, which is the length that I cut my firewood pieces to. The post on the left is positioned 16” from the center of the 16” span. The pictures below tell the story pretty well.

I cut the outlying wood to 16" lengths until I'm left with what you see in this picture, which is short lengths of wood about 32" long.

And here you see the final cut has been made directly down the center.

This idea is still new and can be improved. I think the single t-post on the left needs to be out of there. That way I can center the long lengths in the 16” span. They will stack and balance themselves better that way.

I plan to lay a board or log on the ground, maybe 10 ft long, and mark off 16” increments, beginning in the center of the 16” t-post span. Then I’ll just start on each end of the stack and cut towards the center, visually eyeing up my saw with the 16” increments on the bottom board. And my last cut will be right down the center.

And that's all there is to it.

P.S.

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I think this is an original "whizbang" idea on my part. But who knows, I might have seen it somewhere in the past, and subconsciously filed it away, and just think it's my own original idea. When you get to be my age, you can do that sort of thing pretty easily. So if anyone reading this has seen this idea elsewhere, please post or e-mail me about it and I'll give credit where credit is due. Thank you.

Oh, and by the way, for those who don't know, "whizbang" is a dictionary word that means, "conspicuous for speed, excellence, or startling effect."

UPDATE

30 November 2012

"Here I was with a stack of small “logs” that I had from clearing a trail in my bush, I was trying to stack them in a pile that wouldn’t be too bad for cutting and along you came with your post. Spent an hour and knocked together a couple of jigs – it all worked great! I just stacked all the pieces in the jig and my son-in-law came along and cut them. I often mill a bit of wood, and we cut up the slabs for firewood, so these will work great for that job. I might build a 3rd one to handle the longer stuff. Thanks for the inspiration!"

Andrew Jackson (1767-1845) was the seventh president (1829-1837) of the United States.

Andrew Jackson is one of the most controversial of American presidents. He is reviled because of his brutal treatment of Indians. His response to the nullification crisis involving South Carolina may have cast the Union-must-be-preserved die for Lincoln’s later war against the South. And Jackson apparently had no reservations about the institution of slavery. Nevertheless, I can't help but think of Andrew Jackson as one of the most admirable of our presidents (right up there with Washington & Jefferson), based solely on the brave and selfless stand he took against paper money, conniving bankers, and large corporations.

Jackson the politician was not a go-along-to-get-along kind of man. When you understand something about his battle to revoke the charter of the Second Bank of the United States (a non-government institution akin to our modern Federal Reserve), his reasons for opposing the bank, the monumental task it was to to revoke the charter, and his subsequent victory, I dare say that you can’t help but admire the man. Jackson’s war against the bank is well worth understanding, and you can get a pretty good condensed version of the story from this ten minute YouTube video: The Money Masters & Andrew Jackson.

Jackson & Paper Money

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When it comes to the subject of paper money, Jackson believed the United States Constitution clearly says that only gold and silver coin (a.k.a., “specie”) should be the legal tender of America.

Keep in mind that Andrew Jackson’s presidency was only about 50 years after the Constitution was signed. Jackson knew several of the “founding fathers.” He was well acquainted with their thinking and the reasons for putting Article 1, Section 10 into the Constitution, wherein it states:

“No State shall... make any Thing but gold and silver Coin a Tender in Payment of Debts...”

Why would they put that in the Constitution? It was because the Founders understood from personal experience that paper money was an abomination. It was an opportunity and an invitation for public and private schemers to defraud the hardworking people of the country.

Roger Sherman (the only man to sign the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, and the Constitution) was largely responsible for making sure that gold and silver coin was constitutionally declared to be the legal tender of the new nation. Thomas Jefferson once said of Roger Sherman: “That is Mr. Sherman, of Connecticut, a man who never said a foolish thing in his life.” Perhaps Andrew Jackson knew Sherman. It is possible. But even if he did not, I’d bet he read Roger Sherman’s famous little book about the evils of paper money.

But if what is us'd as a Medium of Exchange is fluctuating in
its Value it is no better than unjust Weights and Measures, both which are
condemn'd by the Laws of GOD and Man, and therefore the longest and most
universal Custom could never make the Use of such a Medium either lawful or
reasonable.

What does he mean by a fluctuating medium of exchange? Paper money, of course. The truth about the evil of paper money has not changed in the 260 years since Roger Sherman wrote his book. Nor has it changed in the thousands of years since God declared unjust weights and measures to be an evil (see Leviticus 19:35-36 and Proverbs 11:1).

It is a shame and a pity that America has veered so far off the intended course when it comes to money. I dare say that our nation would have none of the financial distress that currently besets us if we had wisely stayed with gold and silver coin as our money.

Now, because America did not hold fast to specie as currency, it is a virtual certainly that our economy faces collapse and ruination in the days ahead. That is hardly in question. But what kind of economy, based on what kind of money, will come after the collapse? Will gold and silver specie again be the currency of a wise nation, or will another foolish fiat-money scheme be proposed. It behooves us all to understand this issue properly.

There is however, a risk to being an advocate of gold and silver as currency. Most people will think you are something of a kook. Or, you might be labeled as a “terrorist”— an enemy of America. Yes, we have strayed that far from truth and honesty. But it is understandable... After all, to pull the wool off the fiat-money wolf is a serious challenge to the powers that be—the powers that so efficiently extract wealth from the sheep via fractional reserve banking and paper dollar manipulations.

Americans are now slaves to the whole industrialized, centralized, debt-based paper money system that dominates their lives. Sadly, the majority of Moderns don’t understand the roots of their dilemma and the immorality of the modern financial system. If they did, they would cry out for a leader like Andrew Jackson, who would resist and route out the self-serving and powerful money masters, in and out of government, who prey on the people of this country..

Jackson's Farewell Address

Andrew Jackson in 1845, the year he died. He lived only eight years after issuing his Presidential farewell address.

After serving two terms as President, Andrew Jackson was old, sick, and weary He retired to The Hermitage in Tennessee. But before leaving public office, he issued a farewell address to the people of America, much like George Washington did.

I think Jackson’s farewell address is as pertinent to the issues of our day as it was in 1837, especially when it comes to matters of money and government. It should be read and discussed by every person in America who cares about the future of our nation now and in the very difficult days that face us. Bearing that in mind, I present to you the following excerpts for your consideration and illumination (bold emphasis in the text is mine)...

"In reviewing the conflicts which have taken place between different interests in the United States and the policy pursued since the adoption of our present form of Government, we find nothing that has produced such deep-seated evil as the course of legislation in relation to the currency. The Constitution of the United States unquestionably intended to secure to the people a circulating medium of gold and silver. But the establishment of a national bank by Congress, with the privilege of issuing paper money receivable in the payment of the public dues, and the unfortunate course of legislation in the several States upon the same subject, drove from general circulation the constitutional currency and substituted one of paper in its place.It was not easy for men engaged in the ordinary pursuits of business, whose attention had not been particularly drawn to the subject, to foresee all the consequences of a currency exclusively of paper, and we ought not on that account to be surprised at the facility with which laws were obtained to carry into effect the paper system. Honest and even enlightened men are sometimes misled by the specious and plausible statements of the designing. But experience has now proved the mischiefs and dangers of a paper currency, and it rests with you to determine whether the proper remedy shall be applied.

The paper system being founded on public confidence and having of itself no intrinsic value, it is liable to great and sudden fluctuations, thereby rendering property insecure and the wages of labor unsteady and uncertain. The corporations which create the paper money can not be relied upon to keep the circulating medium uniform in amount. In times of prosperity, when confidence is high, they are tempted by the prospect of gain or by the influence of those who hope to profit by it to extend their issues of paper beyond the bounds of discretion and the reasonable demands of business; and when these issues have been pushed on from day to day, until public confidence is at length shaken, then a reaction takes place, and they immediately withdraw the credits they have given, suddenly curtail their issues, and produce an unexpected and ruinous contraction of the circulating medium, which is felt by the whole community. The banks by this means save themselves, and the mischievous consequences of their imprudence or cupidity are visited upon the public. Nor does the evil stop here. These ebbs and flows in the currency and these indiscreet extensions of credit naturally engender a spirit of speculation injurious to the habits and character of the people. We have already seen its effects in the wild spirit of speculation in the public lands and various kinds of stock which within the last year or two seized upon such a multitude of our citizens and threatened to pervade all classes of society and to withdraw their attention from the sober pursuits of honest industry. It is not by encouraging this spirit that we shall best preserve public virtue and promote the true interests of our country; but if your currency continues as exclusively paper as it now is, it will foster this eager desire to amass wealth without labor; it will multiply the number of dependents on bank accommodations and bank favors; the temptation to obtain money at any sacrifice will become stronger and stronger, and inevitably lead to corruption, which will find its way into your public councils and destroy at no distant day the purity of your Government. Some of the evils which arise from this system of paper press with peculiar hardship upon the class of society least able to bear it. A portion of this currency frequently becomes depreciated or worthless,..... It is the duty of every government so to regulate its currency as to protect this numerous class, as far as practicable, from the impositions of avarice and fraud. It is more especially the duty of the United States, where the Government is emphatically the Government of the people, and where this respectable portion of our citizens are so proudly distinguished from the laboring classes of all other nations by their independent spirit, their love of liberty, their intelligence, and their high tone of moral character. Their industry in peace is the source of our wealth and their bravery in war has covered us with glory; and the Government of the United States will but ill discharge its duties if it leaves them a prey to such dishonest impositions. Yet it is evident that their interests can not be effectually protected unless silver and gold are restored to circulation.

These views alone of the paper currency are sufficient to call for immediate reform; but there is another consideration which should still more strongly press it upon your attention.

Recent events have proved that the paper-money system of this country may be used as an engine to undermine your free institutions, and that those who desire to engross all power in the hands of the few and to govern by corruption or force are aware of its power and prepared to employ it. ....

...when the charter for the Bank of the United States was obtained from Congress it perfected the schemes of the paper system and gave to its advocates the position they have struggled to obtain from the commencement of the Federal Government to the present hour. The immense capital and peculiar privileges bestowed upon it enabled it to exercise despotic sway over the other banks in every part of the country. ....it asserted (and it undoubtedly possessed) the power to make money plenty or scarce at its pleasure, at any time and in any quarter of the Union, by controlling the issues of other banks and permitting an expansion or compelling a general contraction of the circulating medium, according to its own will. ...

The result of the ill-advised legislation which established this great monopoly was to concentrate the whole moneyed power of the Union, with its boundless means of corruption and its numerous dependents, under the direction and command of one acknowledged head, thus organizing this particular interest as one body and securing to it unity and concert of action throughout the United States, and enabling it to bring forward upon any occasion its entire and undivided strength to support or defeat any measure of the Government. In the hands of this formidable power, thus perfectly organized, was also placed unlimited dominion over the amount of the circulating medium, giving it the power to regulate the value of property and the fruits of labor in every quarter of the Union, and to bestow prosperity or bring ruin upon any city or section of the country as might best comport with its own interest or policy.

We are not left to conjecture how the moneyed power, thus organized and with such a weapon in its hands, would be likely to use it. The distress and alarm which pervaded and agitated the whole country when the Bank of the United States waged war upon the people in order to compel them to submit to its demands can not yet be forgotten. The ruthless and unsparing temper with which whole cities and communities were oppressed, individuals impoverished and ruined, and a scene of cheerful prosperity suddenly changed into one of gloom and despondency ought to be indelibly impressed on the memory of the people of the United States. If such was its power in a time of peace, what would it not have been in a season of war, with an enemy at your doors? No nation but the freemen of the United States could have come out victorious from such a contest; yet, if you had not conquered, the Government would have passed from the hands of the many to the hands of the few, and this organized money power from its secret conclave would have dictated the choice of your highest officers and compelled you to make peace or war, as best suited their own wishes. The forms of your Government might for a time have remained, but its living spirit would have departed from it.....

...The mischief springs from the power which the moneyed interest derives from a paper currency which they are able to control, from the multitude of corporations with exclusive privileges which they have succeeded in obtaining in the different States, and which are employed altogether for their benefit; and unless you become more watchful in your States and check this spirit of monopoly and thirst for exclusive privileges you will in the end find that the most important powers of Government have been given or bartered away, and the control over your dearest interests has passed into the hands of these corporations.

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The paper-money system and its natural associations--monopoly and exclusive privileges--have already struck their roots too deep in the soil, and it will require all your efforts to check its further growth and to eradicate the evil. The men who profit by the abuses and desire to perpetuate them will continue to besiege the halls of legislation in the General Government as well as in the States, and will seek by every artifice to mislead and deceive the public servants. It is to yourselves that you must look for safety and the means of guarding and perpetuating your free institutions. In your hands is rightfully placed the sovereignty of the country, and to you everyone placed in authority is ultimately responsible. It is always in your power to see that the wishes of the people are carried into faithful execution, and their will, when once made known, must sooner or later be obeyed; and while the people remain, as I trust they ever will, uncorrupted and incorruptible, and continue watchful and jealous of their rights, the Government is safe, and the cause of freedom will continue to triumph over all its enemies.

But it will require steady and persevering exertions on your part to rid yourselves of the iniquities and mischiefs of the paper system and to check the spirit of monopoly and other abuses which have sprung up with it, and of which it is the main support. So many interests are united to resist all reform on this subject that you must not hope the conflict will be a short one nor success easy. My humble efforts have not been spared during my administration of the Government to restore the constitutional currency of gold and silver, and something, I trust, has been done toward the accomplishment of this most desirable object; but enough yet remains to require all your energy and perseverance. The power, however, is in your hands, and the remedy must and will be applied if you determine upon it.

In closing, if you are interested in learning more about Andrew Jackson (the good, and the bad) I recommend a History Channel documentary that you can watch on YouTube in ten parts. Here is a link to the first part (It actually starts 2 minutes into the clip): Andrew Jackson Documentary

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About The Deliberate Agrarian.

I (Herrick KImball) have been blogging here about Faith, Family & Livin' The Good Life since 2005. Browse down this column and you will discover a rich resource of contra-industrial thought, down-to-earth inspiration & useful how-to information.

Farming 1.5 Acres...

Goodness, Beauty & Loving The Earth

Delmar Ain't So Stupid...

Click on Delmar and read why I think he's the smartest of the three characters in the "Oh Brother Where Art Thou" movie

This Man, Now Deceased, Predicted The Economic Decline of America Back in The 1950's.

Click the picture to read about Professor Walter Prescott Webb's Boom Hypothesis of Modern History, and where we are headed from here

Agrarian-Style Economic Self Defense...

I posted this to the internet in early 2008. It is still the most practical advice you'll get for dealing with the harsh economic realities that we face now and will face even more in the years ahead. (click the picture to read the essay)

How To Get Through The Coming Hyperinflation

click the picture to read the 6-part series

Have You Considered Deflation?

Martin Armstrong seems pretty sure of himself (click the sign for details)

The Christian Doctrine of Work

Something's Missing in The 10 Commandmants as it is commonly known. (click the picture)

Have You Seen My Whizbang Gardening Book?

5 stars at Amazon. Click the cover to learn more.

Take A Short Tour Of My Garden...

Strawberries From My Garden!

Grown the "E.P. Roe Way" (click the picture to learn more)

NEW…This Book is a Must-Read for Those Who Want to Understand What Christian Agrarianism is...

…Now available in Kindle format for only $2.99. Click the picture (and read the reviews)

I Make Classic American Clothespins

click the clothespin and learn all about them.

City Living?

Some Thoughts on Christian-Agrarian Community (click the picture)

A Herod Nation

Is that What America Has Become? (click the picture)

Light in Our Dwellings...

Christianity + Agrarianism = Hope In the midst of a dying industrial culture (click the light)

Rural Americans: Cannon Fodder For The New World Order

Click on Sergeant York to read the story.

Freedom Isn't Free (And Other Propoganda)

(click the picture)

Esther Stermer Was A Conspiracy Theorist!

Obviously the woman was a little crazy.… Right? (click the picture for the story)

How Free Men Become Slaves...

A Contra-Industrial Parable From The Okefenokee Swamp (click the pigs)

Have You been to The Agrarian Foundation Article Archives?

(click the picture and go)

What Would an Agrarian Monetary System Look Like?

Well, for one thing, it would NOT be based on paper money. Click Andy Jackson for some details.

Thomas Jefferson's Warnings About Government Debt (Then and Now)

Read it and weep (click the president)

How Farmers Became Slaves To The Corporate Masters

Click on the mostly forgotton 1937 book by Professor Walter Prescott Webb and learn the sad story

A Missive On The Prosperity-Driven Life

"The desire to be rich, to have an abundance of possessions and money, is the keystone of our modern, neo-Babylonian culture." (click the picture for my perspective)

Prosperity Gospel/ Prosperity Idolatry

Click the picture to hear John Piper's powerful 2.5 minute condemnation of the modern prosperity gospel

Agrarian Nation

Another of my online projects (click the picture)

Have You Been To Planet Whizbang?

It's my deliberate agrarian home business. Click the beet and check it out.

NEW….Whizbang Notes

These delightful little notebooks are a great down-to-earth tool. Click the beet to learn more.

Have You Seen The Planet Whizbang Wheel Hoe I Invented?

Click The Picture For Details about the hoe and the inexpensive wheel hoe kits I sell

Why Food?

A Christian-Agrarian perspective (click the picture to read the essay)

I Invite You To Read My Online Gardening Essays

Click on that beautiful handful of sifted compost.

The WifeOf My Youth...

A Blessed Man's Reflections on Young Love (click the happy faces)

Eulogy For Evelyn

She was my mother-in-law. (click the picture)

Ken Badman's Good Example

Actions Speak Louder Than Words. (click the picture)

Have You Seen Leo Sprauer's Handcrafted Hop Hoe?

Click the picture to learn more.

Learn About Whizbang Bucket Irrigation...

(click the trickle valve)

Have You Read Roe?

E.P. Roe, that is. Click on his picture to read some excerpts from this remarkable Christian-agrarian author of the 1800s.

Yeoman Furniture & My New Wood Box

Yeoman Furniture (Part 2)

My Amazing Whizbang Apple Grinder

You can make awesome apple mash, ready for pressing, in no time with this homemade device. Click on the picture to learn more

We Make Apple Cider

You can too (click on the picture to learn how)

Twelve Years Old Today

He's actually 19 now, but my prayer is the same

This is William Kimball(Him An Me Is Kin)

Click on the picture for William's Story

Homegrown Poultry

Click on the picture and I'll show you how to butcher a chicken

This Book Presents a Biblical Vision For God-Glorifying Agriculture. I Highly Recommend it!

The Lovely Marlene With A Homemade Whizbang Garden Cart

Anyone can make a Whizbang Garden Cart. Click on the picture to learn how.

My Whizbang Row Cover Hoop System

Finally Online as of 1/29/10(click the pic)

Have You Seen Jax Hamlin's Chickens?

Click The Chicken!

This Blog Promotes Personal Responsibility And Traditional Concepts of American Liberty

—:::—

"If a community, or a section, or a race, or an age, is groaning under industrialism, and well aware that it is an evil dispensation, it must find a way to throw it off. To think that this cannot be done is pusillanimous. And if the whole community, section, race, or age thinks it cannot be done, then... it has doomed itself to impotence."

—Twelve Southerners

—:::—

The Christian-Agrarian Exodus of 1620

The Pligrims did NOT come to America for religious freedom.(click the picture)

Vacuum Bottle Thermos Cooking

Learn how to prepare and cook simple, inexpensive, wholesome meals (click the thermos bottle to read)

The Sermon I'll Never Forget

Pastor West was at Iwo Jima(click Mt. Suribachi)

Planting Potatoes With A Little Girl

"I must admit that four year old girls were once something like aliens to me." (click the pic)

Boys Will Be…. Warriors

Swinging homemade maces at each other can be great fun!(click the warriors)

Benny's Grandfather Was A Ditch Digger

And He Grew Tomatoes (click the Big Boy)

Backyard Poultry Processing With My 11-Year-Old Son

If he can do it, so can you. (click on the smiley face)

Another Summer Evening's Meal

This is the kind of food we dream about in the depths of winter. (click on the picture)

Backyard Sugaring

We make our own maple syrup. Click on the picture for complete how-to details.

Pickled Garlic Scapes

Click on the silly boy's nose for a pickled scape tutorial

"Every Bean's A Blessing, Boys"

Dried beans present an opportunity to teach important things to my children (click the beans)

Hay Hooks

I bought my sons hay hooks, and they have gotten a lot of use since I wrote this essay